Record Store Day and its freebies: Inspired locally, observed globally

Music lovers in the United States and 18 other countries share a special date every third Saturday in April: Record Store Day.

The brainchild of Chris Brown, vice president of marketing and operations at Portland-based Bull Moose, Record Store Day is a celebration of music and of independent record stores all over the world. This year’s Record Store Day – on Saturday – features free live performances, special edition releases and more.

Performers in Bull Moose stores include Grace Potter and Benny Yurco of Grace Potter and the Nocturnals, Dead Season, Zach Jones, Hot Day at the Zoo and Spose. At Newbury Comics in South Portland, the performers include An Evening With, Maria Stella and Covered in Bees.

Not all participating record stores will have performers, but that doesn’t mean you won’t be able to get really cool stuff at those stores. Stores will be giving away special edition CDs and vinyl records.

Some of the special edition releases available for free include “Live in Skowhegan” from Grace Potter and the Nocturnals, “Live at Bull Moose” from Ani DiFranco, “Live at Clark University” from Jimi Hendrix, “That’s All Right” from Elvis Presley, “Mule Variations 11th Anniversary” from Tom Waits, “Man and the Blues” from Buddy Guy, “Emotion and Commotion” from Jeff Beck and “Happy Record Store Day” from Weezer and Raditude.

Here at MaineToday Media we value our readers and are committed to growing our community by encouraging you to add to the discussion.

To ensure conscientious dialogue we have implemented a strict no-bullying policy. To participate, you must follow our Terms of Use. Click here to flag and report a comment that violates our terms of use.